Vehicle spring



May 5, 1925.

J. G. WINSOR ET AL VEHICLE srnmc' Filed June 30 923 j gmlenidms rotatably secured.

Patented May 5, 1925.

umrsn srArrEs T.,.\ QFFICE.

JAMES GMW-INSOR; on DETROIT, .Ann-snzo HATASHITA, or Ann ARBOR, MICHIGAN.

' VEHICLE; SPRING.

- Application filed M11163), 192s. "Serial nemesis,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that wefJnarEs G. Vinson, a citizen of the U11itecl:=$tates, residing'at Detroit, in the county of 'lVayne and State of Michigan, andSnzo HArnsHrrA, a subject ofthe Emperor: of-Japan, residing at Ann Arbor, in the county of WVashten-aw and State ofMi'chiga'n, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in'aVe axle Wlilll our-special form of axlecarrying the aforesaid described cantilever springs.

hicle Spring, of which the following is a specification. I

This invention relates to vehicle springs and more particularly toone for supporting the front axle of a Fordson tracton It has not been customary to mount a tractor on spi 'ings because of theinten-siv'e stresses, but to secure thechassis-directly onto theaxle; 'T'he object of our invention isto. provides spring suspension that has not only. sufficient strength to withstand the stresses-but has the elasticity to-absorb the shocks. Another objec-t is to mount our springs on the tractor withoutchanging any chassisdesign, thereby our device may be installed quickly and efficiently with -;very little labor and cost. 1

In'the'drawings:

Pg. 1 is a plan view of our axle and spring construction.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of our construction attached to a tractor chassis.

The chassis frame a. of a tractor has the usual Fordson bracket Z2 suspended therefrom provided with a yoke portion'c, and our new spring axle construction is adapted to be pivota-lly supported within this yoke portion. Our construction consists of an axled which is curved outwardly and downard'ly as shown in the drawing, inorder to clear the bracket 5, and is provided at the outer ends with the holes e in which the spindles of the steering knuckles are Holes f are drilled througlrthe web of the axle in which the radius rods may be secured.

A pair of inwardly extending cantilever leaf springs g are each anchored at one end to the outer end of the 'axle'just inside of where the, steering knuckles are rotatably secured] U-bolts h and nuts. clamp the leaves tightly between the bearing plate 6 and the inclined bearing portion carried by the axle. Each spring is inclined downwardly and the end thereof formed into a knuckle eye Z "for receiving the shackle holt m. A pair of shackles it connect each "ation.

spring to the. supporting bracket .61: and a shackle bolt .0 *pivotally secures bothipai'r ofshackles to saidbra'cketl. The lower bearlng' pla'te (it is provided with a boss 'portionpthrough which aiholeg is drilled. This hole is arranged tor'e'ceiw'e the radius rod when-wheels of alarger diameter areused.

' Inour invention we replace'the usual-rigid Springs of this eharacter whicli are relativelyshOrt in length havegreat stress, resistdug power together "with sufficient elasticity. We have shown' our -preferredfor1n of axle and spring construction asusedniwhen wheels of greater diameter than the stand 'ard wheels are used. In usingstandard wheels which are of less diameter it. isessentainin the ehass'is-fran'ie at a constant ele- What we:c1aini isi Ina vehicle": spring. suspension, ,the combination of a chassis frame provided at the front with a supporting bracket depending below the centers of the front wheels, an axle having its central portion bowed outwardly, a pair of spring members anchored to the under side of the axle near the ends thereof and extending inwardly substantially perpendicular to the axis of the chassis frame and below the level of the .axle, and means for connecting the inner end of each spring member to the depending bracket carried by the chassis frame in the space made by the bowing of the axle.

2. In a vehicle spring suspension, the combination of a chassis frame provided with. a bracketdepending to substantially the wheel centers level, an axle having its central portion bowed downwardly and outwardly, a pair of spring members anchored I to the under side of the axle near the ends thereof and extending inwardly substantially perpendicular to the axis of the chassis frame, and means for connecting the in-- ner end of each spring member to the depending bracket carried by said chassis frame in the space made by the bowing of the axle and below the level of the axle.

3. In a vehicle spring suspension, the combination of a chassis frame provided with. a depending bracket centrally located with respect to the chassis frame and depending below the level of the outer end of the axle, a shackle bolt carried by the depending bracket, an axle, arranged at its center to provide clearance at the level of the outer ends of the axle, a pair of inwardly extending cantilever spring members anchored to the under side of the axle near the ends thereof, the entire length of said springs located below the level of the axle, and a pair of shackles connecting the inner end of each cantilever spring with said shackle bolt carried by the depending bracket.

4. In a vehicle spring suspension, the combination of a chassis frame, an axle arranged at its center to provide clearance below the level of the outer ends and provided with a bearing surface on its under side near each end, a pair of inwardly extending cantilever springs positioned below the level of the axle along its entire length, each having one end engaging with said bearing surface and the other end secured to the chassis frame, a bearing plate arranged to engage the under side of the spring member, and means for clamping the bearing plate and spring member against the bearing surface carried by the axle.

5. In a vehicle spring suspension, the combination of a chassis frame, an axle provided with a bearing surface on its under side rear each end, a pair of inwardly extending spring members each having one end engaging with said bearing surface and the other recesseend secured to the chassis frame, a bearing plate and means for clamping the bearing plate and spring member against the bearing surface carried by the axle, said bearing plate having a hole for fastening radius rods thereto.

6. In a vehicle spring suspension, the combination of a chassis frame, an axle pro vided with a hole near each end for fastening radius rods thereto, a pairof spring members, a bearing plate and means for clamping the bearing plate and one end of each spring member to the under side of the axle near the end thereof, and the said bearing plate provided with a hole for fastening radius rods thereto when using wheels of a greater size.

7. In a vehicle spring suspension, the combination of a chassis frame, a radiator supported thereon, a depending bracket secured to the chassis frame under the radiator provided with a yoke portion, an axle having its central portion bowed downwardly and outwardly, a pair of spring members anchored to the under side of the axle near the ends thereof and extending inwardly substantially perpendicular to the axis of the chassis frame and below the level of the axle, and means for connecting the inner end of each spring member to the yoke portion carried by said depending bracket in the space made by the bowing of the axle.

In testimony whereof they a'lhx their signatures.

JAMES G. lVINSOR. SEZO HATASHITA. 

